EULOGY ON THE DEATH OF CAPT, ABRAM YAN OLINDA, WHO frELL AT THE BATTLE OF 01IAPULT EPEC, .SEPTEMBER 13, 1847. DELIVERED IN THE FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, ALBANY, ON FRIDAY, JUI.Y T, 1848, BY COL. JOHN.SHARTS. ALBANY: PRINTED BY JOEL MUNSELL. 1848. EULOGY ON THE DEATH OF CAPT, ABRAM VAN OLINDA, WHO FELL AT THE BATTLE OF CHAPULTEPEC, SEPTEMBER 13, 1847. DELIVERED IN THB FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, ALBANY, ON FRIDAY, JUL.Y T, 1848, BY COL. JOHN SHARTS. ALBANY: PRINTED BY JOEL MUNSELL. 1848. E~4-o3 1 EULOGY. His noble spirit has taken its flight To unknown realms away. Will not his Name be fondly cherished ever? His memory live his deeds of valor too? His precious relics here await the rite Of final sepulture. And we his friends, His relatives and all, have come up Hither, in melancholy mood, To mingle tears and solemn sighs, In grief, for our own champion slain ! On three several occasions, within a space of time less than three-quarters of a century, have the American people been compelled to resort to the disagreeable necessity of arms, those ultimate arbi trators in national disputes. On each occasion we have been invincible and victorious, and humbled our enemies into acknowledgments of national re spect. The invasion of Mexico, by authority of the American government, produced the most astonish ing and overshadowing sensations throughout the civilized globe. The annals of no nation contain records of equal achievements. The conquest of Mexico, nearly three centuries and a half ago, by- Ferdinand Cortez, was boasted of by the Spanish nation, as one of the greatest military achievements on record. Hannibal, the great Carthagenian gene ral, was idolized and worshipped for reducing Spain to a state of subjugation, and in conceiving the bold and original idea of crossing the hitherto impene trable Alps, and penetrating Italy to the very gates of Rome. The praises of centuries, and ages and years, have been awarded to Ajax, Ulysses and Agamemnon of ancient Greece Tarquin, Brutus, Ca3sar and Pompey of Rome Nelson, Abercrom- bie and Marlborough of England Napoleon, Murat and Ney of France, for mighty deeds of war. The pages of history are 'profuse with encomiums of praise, bestowed upon the above named heroes, for their mighty skill and wonderful success in arms. But when the impartial historian shall assume the duty of recording the events connected with the con quest of Mexico, in 1846-7, he will find material for his pen, greatly surpassing in wonder, more extrava gant in amazement, and more brilliant in execution, than is exhibited on any other record extant; he will portray with glowing and brilliant colors the con duct of our soldiery in the bannered field, amid the scenes of stirring strife, and feats of daring prowess which crowned our arms with a splendid blazon of glory, and won for their authors an enshrinernent in the pantheon of military history. The mighty deeds of American valor will be inscribed in cha racters of thrilling patriotism on pages of everlasting light. It is immaterial whether the skill, strategy or bravery of Scott, Taylor, Butler, Worth, Wool, Quitman or Shields, are reserved and selected for the comparison, or the invincible, indomitable daring of their officers and men. Palo Alto, Mon terey, Buena Vista, Vera Cruz, Cerro Gordo, Cha- pultepec, and the Capital, will occupy brighter pages in history than the invasion of England by Julius Ca3sar, the conquest of Spain by Hannibal or Napo leon, or the great victory at Waterloo by Welling ton. Every officer and soldier of our gallant army can truly exclaim, as did Julius Caesar, after con quering Pharnaces, at the great battle of Zela "I came, I saw, I conquered." The attack of the Mexicans upon the commands of Captains Thornton and Hardee, on the 24th of April, 1846, on the east side of the Rio Grande, about fifty miles above Fort Brown, in which six teen Americans were killed or wounded, and the residue, consisting of sixty-three men, were cap tured by the Mexicans, and conveyed in triumph to their capital, caused the first American blood to flow. This act was considered by our constituted authorities, as a hostile invasion of our soil. That was the first commencement of hostilities. Gene ral Taylor, then in command at Corpus Christi, im mediately communicated the fact of that high handed transaction to the authorities at Washing ton. Congress almost unanimously declared, that "war existed by the act of Mexico.'' Then it was that the whole American nation became aroused ; the sword that had quietly reposed in its scabbard for more than thirty years, became instantaneously unsheathed, and the much loved banner with its spangled stars, was unfurled to call the slumbering Sons of Freedom out, to avenge the blood of their countrymen, and to preserve and maintain the grossly insulted honor of their nation. The war note was thus sounded, and however unwelcome its key, the patriots who are always ready to protect their country, became at once aroused with its shrill echo and penetrating reverbe rations. It was the clarion of their own country that called them to the protection of their country's honor. It was the thrilling outcry of the Eagle of America, which had left its eyrie in the skies, to arouse the dormant nation into life and vigorous action. The chord thus magnetized, vibrated throughout the entire Republic, and its pulsation reached every American heart. Never in the history of ancient or modern times, has a war been conducted with the same unparalleled success. Its numerous victories have crowned with imperishable honors, the officers and men, and shed a reflected glory on their country. Glorious was the fate of every hero who fell fighting his country's battles. Rich in the gratitude, and honored in the blessings of his countrymen, his name shall be handed down to posterity as a martyr to glory in the cause of patriotism. And what, though the loved voices of home did not soothe his last mo ments the shout of victory robbed death's sum mons of its terrors, and the stars and stripes floating in triumph over his head, robed the grim monster himself in visions of unfading glory. What though his dying eyes no tender mother closed ; what though the eyes of love wept no sympathetic tears, and the hand of affection planted no violet, no wil low to wave over his cold bed, nor the place of his rest graced with floral offerings; still a nation's tears have moistened the newly turned sod of his grave, and great Nature herself decked it in her fairest flowers, and showered upon it her sweetest offering, as if enamored of the spot where a hero slept. And though that wilderness of sweets alone marks the narrow limits of a soldier's grave, his epitaph is written on the brightly illuminated pages of his country's history and his monument is erected in the memory of his countrymen. Great as is the success of the American army, wonderful as it is admitted to be it is not great alone because it has triumphed in every engage ment with the foe. Great is that army in a thousand ways incomparably great ! Great in daring, in action, and endurance ; great in zeal, discipline and influence. Europeans tell us they have set rules and regula tions for every thing "rules for every movement rules for advancing, charging, besieging, retreat ing, and for procuring supplies. But you Americans defy all rules, and yet you triumph. You obtain provisions from places where the enemy starves; you procure mules and horses wjiere your enemy cannot mount a squadron or furnish a baggage train You. rush from mountain barrier into gorges and defiles, alike unchecked by walled cities, castles bristling with cannon, fortresses made by nature and strengthened by art, impassable swamps and frowning precipices and after overcoming man and nature, from Vera Cruz to the heart of the land, you captured even the almost inaccessible capitol itself! All this you have done, too, with a mere scouting party. There must be something in this, which we Europeans can't understand !" The fact is, there is something in it which they do not understand. It is this: Every man feels himself equal to each foe in the enemy's legions, and the spirit within him inspires a confidence of victory. Our secret is this: every American soldier in an engagement is just as much interested in the result as the commanding general himself, and feels his individual power, responsibility and glory equally at stake. If the general becomes disabled, the colonel leads the charge; if the colonel is wounded, the major or captain leads on with no less daring; if the captain shrinks from the encounter, the sub ordinates struggle with the more desperate valor; and if the last officer is struck down, then each pri vate will fight while a drop of blood is left in his veins, or a stripe of the American ensign is left for him to defend. Who can predict the ultimate consequences which this Mexican war will produce upon man kind ? Who wilt venture to measure the extent of its influence ? Who is there possessed of foresight and sagacity sufficient to penetrate with his imagi- nation, into the recesses of futurity, and estimate its consequences upon unborn generations ? Has any important result already been accomplished ? Has the glory of the contest of freemen in this war, had any influence in dethroning the French monarch on the anniversary of the day which Americans have consecrated to the memory of the immortal WASH INGTON? Why are thrones tottering in Europe? Why is the whole world in a state of excitement even to fermentation? What is producing the mighty upheaving of empires in Austria, Italy, Po land, Prussia and Germany? What spirit stirs up the great masses in those countries, in one tremen dous effort to assert the rights of man ? What pro duces the convulsions in Ireland ? What stirs up every Irish heart with vengeance and indignation ? Why is it, that that bleeding, humiliated, starving, dying nation is now panting, more than ever, for a national existence, for a restoration of its nationality, for a government among the nations of the earth? It is the spirit of EQUALITY, FRATERNITY, LIBERTY ; it is the germination of the seeds of the tree of LIBERTY, which the breeze of heaven has wafted o'er the ocean. The influence of our institutions is extend ing over the continent of Europe it is the great feature of the age and is this moment spreading with the force, power and velocity of electricity with the rapidity of lightning playing upon rnagic wires. It is the arraignment of despotism before the great tribunal of humanity, summoned to give an account to the people of its stern stewardship 2 10 over the institutions of the old world, during the last fifteen centuries. This spirit will extend itself until the nations of the earth shall better understand their common destiny and their rights; when they shall constitute a common unity, a republic of bro thers and of friends forming the true government of the human race. The New York Regiment is a corps of volunteers organized under a law of Congress of May 13, 1846. More than six months were they reserved as minute men. When in December following, the order came for the regiment to rendezvous for active duty, they promptly embarked for the scene of action, with a full complement of rank and file. They were not inured to privation the weary watch the forced march the stinted rations. They were not drilled to the erect position the firm, steady, measured step -the quick eye, the calm and col lected mien the upright military bearing nor the gravity and steadiness of regular veterans. They were unused to wars alarms; they were strangers to the tented field, to garrison duty, and to the dread ful carnage of the battle-field. They were untutored in the science of arms, and unused to the shrill bu gle note of warrior preparation for the mighty com bat. They knew not The battle plain, where sword, and shield, and bayonet, Flashed in the light of mid-day ; where the strength Of serried hosts is shivered, and the grass Green from the soil of carnage, waves above The crush'd and mouldering skeletons ! 11 The volunteers knew no profession but that of peace, and they had always delighted in reposing upon its flowery fields of happiness, contentment and joy. They delighted in the arts of peace, not in the deadly strife of arms. Nay, with us, they looked upon war as among the worst of evils. Yet they believed there was a time when tame submis sion to multiplied injuries, and ever increasing insults and outrages, must come to an end; when the character of a nation, like that of an individu al, must be vindicated. They believed, too, that Mexico had wronged us much, and for which satis faction was about to be taken. Longer forbearance from such a people could only have invited indig nity, and insured the contempt of the other nations of the earth. It was thus that the patriots of the First Regiment of New York Volunteers reasoned with others and among themselves; it was thus that friends, brothers, sons, felt ; and such the im pulses that impelled them onward. They loved our great Republic ; they regarded it as the fairest column ever erected by the hand of man as the beacon light of the world ; and they firmly resolved to protect it in its high mission to regenerate the world, though it carried them through the red glare of battle down to death ! Impulses, sacred, lofty and patriotic as these, induced their enrolment under the folds of our own star-spangled banner. No less or meaner motive could have torn them from their homes, their loved families and their ar dent friends. They left freemen's home to do battle 12 in Freedom's glorious cause. They bore away with them, upon their banner, the inspiring EXCELSIOR, the ESCUTCHEON of New York. They planted it upon the battlements of the Mexican capital, not only pure, brilliant and unsullied, but with fresh deeds of glory inscribed with shining characters upon its silken folds. It remained proudly floating in the fresh breeze of the conquered empire, until lowered with distinguished glory, by the only order which could ever be obeyed the injunctions of THE OLIVE BRANCH OF PEACE. There is a vast difference between volunteers and regulars, in their relation to the government. The latter pursue the science of war as a profession ; their whole lives are devoted to the camp, and by their prowess, mount the ladder of fame, and by continued deeds of chivalry, many advance near to and succeed in mounting its topmost round. Not so with volunteers. They only enlist in the hour of their country's peril, at the call of duty, and when their services are actually needed. When the emergency becomes quieted, the honor of the na tion protected and vindicated, then the survivors return to the bosom of their homes, and resume their usual peaceful avocations, receiving only their country's gratitude and praise. It is asserted by writers in aristocratic govern ments, that standing armies of regulars are indis pensable in wars of invasion. Has not the American army in Mexico completely eradicated that fallacy ? Have not the invaders been triumphantly success ful? We have shown, that by a proper discipline, 13 inspired with patriotism, private citizens can very readily be transformed into veteran soldiers. We have shown, also, that this class of soldiers possess equal valor, courage and fortitude, with more ex perienced regulars. The glorious results at Buena Vista, where our entire force was mostly volunteers, fully tests the correctness of this assertion. The wonderful exploits of Col. Doniphan, with his regi ment of Missouri volunteers in New Mexico, is an evidence how successfully dangers can be overcome how mountains, rivers, deserts, defiles, can be encountered and passed, by resolute American citizen soldiery, determined on success. In con nexion with the regular army, the volunteers have been exposed to the same perils, encountered the same hardships, underwent all the vicissitudes of a soldier's life, except defeat, and together triumphed on many a sharp contested battle plain. It was natural, that in our anxiety to learn intel ligence from the army, we desired particularly to hear from the New York regiment, from our Albany company. It was not altogether because many of our friends and intimate associates were attached to this portion of the army, that we so eagerly panted for information; but it was also on account of the fact, that the honor, the chivalry, the military character of the Empire state, were intrusted to the care of this regiment, the only one on active duty in old Mexico, from this state. At length, the information arrived, that a succession of hard fought battles carried our army into the city of the Mon- 14 tezumas ; and it was with the utmost gratification, that the information thus imparted, gave us the assurance, that the foremost in the roar of battle, the bravest in the conflicts, and among the most conspicuous in the dreadful contests and glorious victories, was the regiment from this state, and the company from this city. We exulted in the fact, that the Empire sons had met the Mexican hosts, with undaunted hearts and potent hands. Their enemies, at every step, were scattered over every crimsoned field ; they faltered not an instant, but on every occasion, met the enemy with a wall of iron resolution, showers of leaden hail, and an impen etrable front of bristling bayonets. The Albany company, with its three Albany officers, were con spicuous in every engagement, from the gulf to the capital. The whole valley contains indubitable evidences of their valor. Every man rushed with impetuous zeal upon the enemy; penetrated his lines, broke his ranks, scaled his fortifications, defy ing the leaden ball, the iron grape, or bayonet's charge. They leaped with agility from bastion to parapet, scattering the astonished Mexicans amid the smoking ruins of their supposed impenetrable barriers and castles. They feared not " The justling rocks where fierce Charybdis raves, And howling Scylla whirls her thundrous waves !" Previous to their arrival at the gates of the capi tal, the regiment became materially crippled and reduced, by the loss of several officers and men. BURNETT, badly wounded BAXTER, VAN OLINDA, 15 CHANDLER, GALLAGHER, weltering in their blood still, with a spirit of indomitable daring, led by the noble BURNHAM, onward and forward the gallant remnant pressed, with bayonets charged, until the obdurate foe, in quadrupled numbers, were repulsed, the last great victory triumphantly achieved, and the stars and stripes of their own state hoisted the first, amid cheers, huzzas and exultations, upon the tower of the Mexican capitol. Let honor be extended to the survivors of that noble band; they have well earned our warmest applause. But to the fallen, the lamented dead, what homage shall we pay ? All gratitude to their memory! Yet how feebly can the most glowing fancy, the most eloquent tongue, and the most pro found intellect portray their heroic services. The silent sympathies of the heart are alone capable of accomplishing such a deserving, befitting eulogy. This war has placed the Albany company, high on the list of heroes. From the impregnable battle ments of Vera Cruz, all along the hard fought plains, horrid ravines, and mountainous passes to the gates of the great capital, the same dazzling success has marked the career of this band of veterans. "Fate seems to have delighted in surrounding them with dangers," in exciting the mournful forebodings and sympathetic fears of their friends at home, that the meteor of their glory might dispel the darkness of despondency, and dry up by its brilliancy, the tears of the afflicted and bereaved. What shall I say of our VAN OLINDA ? Shall we seek him amidst 16 the bristling bayonets, waving high the sword which he had vowed never should be disgraced, the heroic leader of his gallant company, with the undaunted BURNETT and BAXTER, arid the valorous spirits of our FARNSWORTH, GRIFFIN and BURGESS ? In every place he showed himself high above all praise of mine. His laurels shall be twined with those of his depart ed comrades, and those wreaths of glories, shall be the proudest boasts of their surviving friends, till memory perishes, and gratitude is no more. Wher ever worth is appreciated, and where glory is known, such deeds shall be wafted on the breath of fame, like flower seeds on the winds of Heaven. There can be found no lustre more pure, nor more deserv- ingly earned, than that which radiates around the names of the gallant heroes, who fought and con quered with VAN OLINDA. But the mission of the sword is ended; it is again encased within its scabbard ; the panoply of war is laid aside; PEACE welcome, delightful PEACE is again restored. Our armies are returning from the unnatural strife, and resuming their ordinary avo cations in peaceful life. Their warrior " brows bound with victorious wreaths : " Their " bruised arms hung up for monuments. " May another occasion never arrive, when wars and the dreadful tumults thereof, shall be heard in this republic. Let the destiny which we are commis sioned to fulfil, be one of good will to all men, ene mies to none. The occasion of our present gathering, my friends, 17 is one to us of no common occurrence. The cere monies of this day are of no ordinary nature. They are of the most solemn and imposing character. This vast assemblage of the people, is a spontane ous outpouring of heartfelt sorrow. It is a willing tribute of unadulterated grief, and unalloyed sadness. The multitudes who have come up hither this day, are anxious to mingle their heavings of heart and tears together, in token of their deep affliction. The solemn, mournful and imposing funeral procession, the muffled drum, the sabled furled banner, the slow and measured march of his military associates the serious and melancholy air and appearance of the Brotherly Order, of which he was also an honorable member in fraternal affection, in their impressive habiliments and regalia all tend to render this occasion one of interest, instruction and reverence. The precious remains of one now lies before us, who only a few short months since, possessed a spirit as buoyant, a heart as guileless, a mind as patriotic, a hand as devoted, as any other man's. There lies the decaying tabernacle, which encased as noble a spirit as ever winged its flight to the mansions of eternity. Within that enclosure is con tained the ashes of a patriot, a hero, and a man. As yesterday only, the precious relics which now lie inanimate and unconscious before us, possessed life, spirit, vigor, health, and elasticity; to-day, they are to be deposited in the bosom of their mother earth! And we, the creatures of an hour, have congregated here to day, to pay the last sad honors to departed 3 18 worth, which to-rnorrow it will be required to be rendered unto us. It is manifestly appropriate, on this solemn occa sion, that I should speak somewhat concerning him, whilst he was in a state of existence amongst us. Captain VAN OLINDA, in early life, enroled himself a private, under Captain STRAIN, in the Albany Re publican Artillery. He rapidly rose in distinction and regular promotion, and held the second office in that patriotic corps, when the Mexican war com menced. He immediately volunteered to aid his country, when the shrill clarion resounded through the nation. No sooner had the requisition from government, calling for troops to aid in the prose cution of the war with Mexico, been received by the executive of New York, than VAN OLINDA, at the head of eighty devoted patriots, enroled him self for instant service, and promptly reported for active duty. He did not hesitate an instant he made no abstract inquiries he scrutinized not the justice of the war he had no time to deter mine by mathematical demonstration, what the probable cost of the war might be, in life or trea sure. He only knew that his country called for immediate assistance, and he most nobly obeyed her summons, marched to the field of most immi nent danger, breasting himself in defence of his country's honor. The objects which actuate gallant spirits, are not always rightly estimated. What was it that in duced our departed friend to enter the service of 19 his country ? Was it a desire to satiate a reckless passion for the din of battle and the field of mortal carnage? Certainly not. Within his breast quietly reposed a heart as free from tumult as any other mortal possessed. Within his head was a mind as quiet, gentle, inoffensive and undisturbed as the innocent lamb. Retiring, unassuming* modest and unobtrusive in his nature and disposition kind, affectionate, frank and friendly in his demeanor he was never regarded in any other light, than a man more eminently adapted to adorn and bless domestic life, than one of commotion, carnage and war. What then induced him to enter the army? What impelled him to leave behind an affectionate wife, and an infant child, father, mother, sisters, brothers, and friends? Why did he abandon a life of endearing happines, ease and comfort, and sub ject himself voluntarily and enthusiastically, to the dangers of the mountainous billows of the raging gulf, the imminent perils of an unhealthy climate, and the still greater impending horrors of the battle field? It was that resistless love of country that indescribable patriotic ardor, which none but the American heart can feel. It was the identical electric spark which caused two hundred thousand of free dom's volunteers to spring spontaneously upon their feet, when the first blood fell on the valley of the Rio Grande. It was the same spirit which actuated the heroes of 1812, to vindicate "Free trade and sailors' rights," and maintain the " freedom of the seas." It was the identical glorious impulse that nerved the 20 mighty arms and stimulated the indomitable hearts of the American revolution. It was the soul stirring call of country! That country for which VAN OLINDA died, induced him to offer his life a willing sacrifice for the preservation of its honor, which he so highly prized. He passed through many a conflict, in cutting his pathway from the castle of Ulloa to the capital. After having bravely driven the enemy before him from the gulf to the gates of the great city, Captain VAN OLINDA fell in advance of his company, whilst in the meritorious and daring act of scaling the breast works of Chapultepec. He fell on the me morable 13th of September, 1847, in the 29th year of his age. He fell on that field of carnage, immor tality and fame, where so many other gallant and devoted sons of New York were also sent to their last, their final account ! Loud amid the din of bat tle, and the roar of musketry, was heard his heroic voice, encouraging his men to victory ordering them to grapple with the foe, and persuading them to remember the day and their country. But the moment the victorious prize was within his grasp, a mortal blow struck him to the earth ! In giving the official report of this great battle, Brig. Gen. QUITMAN incorporates these sentences: " At the base of the hill, constituting $ part of the works of the for tress of Chapultepec, and directly across our line of advance, were the strong batteries before described, flanked on the right by some strong buildings, and by a heavy stone wall about fifteen feet high, which ex tended around the base of the hill towards the west. Within two hun dred yards of these batteries were some dilapidated buildings, which afforded a partial cover to our advance. Between these and the wall ex- 21 tended a low meadow, the long grass of which concealed a number of wet ditches by which it was intersected. To this point the command, partially screened ,advanced by a flank, the storming parties in front, under a heavy fire from the fortress, the batteries, and breastworks of the enemy. The advance was here halted under the partial cover of the ruins, and upon the arrival of the heads of the South Carolina and New York regiments, respectively, Gen. Shields was directed to move them obliquely to the left, across the low ground, to the wall at the base of the hill. Encouraged by the gallant general who had led them to victory at Churubusco, and in spite of the obstacles which they had to encounter in wading through several deep ditches, exposed to a severe and galling fire from the enemy, these tried regiments promptly executed the move ment, and effected a lodgment. In directing the advance, Brig. Gen. Shields was severely wounded in the arm. No persuasions, however, could induce that officer to leave his command, or quit the field. * * The brave Captain Van Olinda, of the New York regiment, was killed at the head of his company. Lieut. Col. Baxter, of the same regiment, a valua ble and esteemed officer, while gallantly leading his command, fell, mor tally wounded, near the wall. * * The gallant New York regiment claims for their standard the honor of being the first waved from the battlements of Chapultepec. The veteran Mexican General, Bravo, with a number of officers and men, were taken prisoners in the castle. They fell into the hands of Lieut. Chas Brower, of the New York regiment, who report ed them to me." Although we are gratified with this opportunity of being permitted to deposit with our own hands, these remains in the " narrow house," still we greatly sorrow, that the relics of our own brave and undaunted KEARNEY, are not also committed to our care,, for solemn funeral interment, beside the dust of her who was his comrade and partner in life. But he sleeps far away in his rude, lonely and soli tary grave. His weeping comrades " Sadly and quickly they laid him down On the field of his fame fresh and gory; They carved not a line, they rais'd not a stone, But left him alone in his glory." It is an ancient and sacred custom to rescue from foreign lands the remains of gallant heroes slain in 22 general combat. To know that their graves will not be trodden by foreign feet, or their bones left to whiten the battle fields in an enemy's country, is a reflection most consoling. To know that they are preserved, and interred in their own country, in the midst of their relatives and friends who have gone before them, and in the spot which is held sacred for such holy purposes; and that their graves are watered with the tears of affection, and the green sward decorated with the primrose, the laurel and cypress, are matters of endearing happiness and consolation. It assuages the grief occasioned by such a death, to know that all there is left, is reli giously deposited beside those members of the same family who have previously departed into eternity- side by side to repose, as in life they had together commingled. A cenotaph erected here, would have been a poor consolation, if Captain VAN OLINDA'S remains had been interred upon the spot where he fell three thousand miles from his home. The gratifying intelligence has this morning reached Albany, that company H, (Van Olinda's,) arrived at New Orleans on the 26th of last month. They may therefore soon be expected amongst us. As an. act of justice to those brave spirits who have yielded their lives in defence of the nation's honor, and as a tribute of gratitude to their surviv ing widows and children, a bill was introduced in Congress, by Senator Dix, of this state, allowing annuities to be granted to such survivors; and I am extremely gratified in being able to announce here 23 to-day, that the bill finally passed the House of Representatives, on the day before yesterday, and is undoubtedly now a law. The application is based upon a memorial, signed by most of the officers under Gen. SCOTT, when at Puebla, the day previous to their marching towards the capital. The gratitude of the nation will undoubtedly be extended to the families of those who so imploring ly and deservedly petitioned. When a soldier nobly falls in battle, a nation mourns his fate, and should adopt his children. No hero will be permitted to die obscurely and be forgotten. Although the heart rending intelligence may arrive, that a husband or a father's blood has been poured out upon the crim soned valleys of Mexico, yet there is something of consolation in the thought, that their country has provided a life insurance for the benefit of the dis consolate widow and unconscious orphan. A law of Congress of such a meritorious character, will be hailed with approbation, by every American citizen. RELATIVES AND FRIENDS OF THE DEPARTED CAPTAIN I feel, and fully realize, how incompetent I have been to accomplish the task which I was invited to undertake. It were better to have assigned this melancholy duty to the care of abler hands. But no human being, however gifted, could be so elo quent as the occasion itself; and I have felt, as I have heard my own voice echo here, that it was an intrusion on your thoughts too sacred to be disturbed. Let the heart of this great assembly speak let it 24 make its silent but impressive offering to the memory of the honored dead. This is no time for the living to address you. The dead officer is speaking! He is holding communion with your thoughts! and long after my poor voice is stilled in death, and your animated forms are mouldering into dust, and the mournful moss accumulating upon our tombs, his noble example of patriotism and valor, will be speaking to our children's children, through the brilliant page of history, or from the sculptured monument, animating them to emulating deeds of glory and renown. Let these remains be consigned to the green earth, In some pleasant, rural, quiet residence of the dead, where the solitude of great Nature exists, and where she herself holds converse and communion with the bright orbs of morning, noon and night. Let the spot be sacred in which these precious relics shall be deposited hallowed be the place where they shall rest. Let the melancholy requiem be reve rently chaunted o'er his honored grave. Let it be consecrated by the tears and affections of this whole community, and the sleep of the warrior citizen be sacred, until time shall be dissolved into eternity until the bright morning of the final resurrection, when the loud blast of the last trumpet shall call the millions of every nation to their inevitable, ever lasting judgment. Let him, " Peaceful, sleep out tlie Sabbath of the tomb, And wake to raptures in the life to come."